"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
Psalm 46:10
Zion
Gooseberry Mesa
2:21 time
259 out of 789 total runners
259 out of 789 total runners
25 of 108 age division (30-39)
126 of 517 all female
12 miles total
1034 ft. in total elevation
12 miles total
1034 ft. in total elevation
{ The sunrise cast a beautiful glow. }
When we left base camp to drive to the start lines it was pitch black outside. The flip side of this are the night skies and ability to see all the stars. Simply incredible. Addi and I slept amazing this second night staying plenty warm and dry.
Again, we had to drive a little over an hour to the start line which for locals, looks bizarre seeing a line of headlights literally miles long as we all follow one after another. In order to get to the "parking lot" the second morning we had to drive on a very bumpy road for about a mile then pull into a low laying cactus, dirt cattle field to park our beat up rental. Thank goodness it stopped raining or we'd never even get past the beginning of the dirt road!
This was the first time we were able to see the beginning of the sunrise and it didn't disappoint. The colors in Zion were again amazing. Completely different canyon than Bryce both in size, elevation and the surface I ran on. Some loose sand but mainly rippled gritty rock that was rolling on the top of a "flat" canyon. Looks are deceiving from a distance. I was surprised how much green was in the desert. This particular trail had lots of cactus and what looked to be pine trees. The path we took had the runners along the edge for half of the race. I was shocked how many were brave enough to sit on the ledge to get that epic photo shot. The Mommy in me wanted to reach out my arm and tell the adults to stay back.
It became repetitive saying things like, "Wow! Beautiful! Oh my goodness! This is gorgeous!" The first night in camp I met a couple from our area and we seemed to stand in line, run together for a few miles and bump into each other throughout the weekend. Laura had lost a close friend to breast cancer and together we shouted how majestic today's canyon was. It was cool to have that expected encouragement when we found each other on the course. And by course I mean follow the pink ribbon and if you can't find it, stop, look around and decide where all the footprints are heading. There were times I really had to search for the course marker or I'd be way off adding miles to the run.
It was in Zion that a cactus bit me in the ankle while passing another runner. Good heavens it has a strong bite! Rolled my ankle on the rock but just kept going until I could find myself a mid-run PBJ again. The event staff had a fabulous aid station prepared for all the runners. A spread that included sandwiches, candy, chips, pickles, fruit and liquids. And let's not forget the pop up Eco tents for natures way of discarding waste. They had to of been no bigger than three by three giving you hardly any room to take care of business, but I was still grateful having that verses squatting over a cactus.
I felt great on this run. Breakfast that morning wasn't awesome so I only had a few bites. By the end of today's race I was starving.
Addi and I grabbed Subway for lunch and after showers found a few local attractions to entertain our afternoon. I just loved having her along with me. We laughed so much together. There was no pressure to have serious talks; rather quality time just being with each other. We certainly made some amazing memories... I'm not sure I convinced her to become a runner. Not yet.
{ Find the ribbon... }
{ Out and back had us turning on the edge. }
{ Scott & Laura from Skagit Valley. }
{ Karmen; my friends SIL. }
{ Car selfies and cave explorations. }
{ Driving is distracting with all the rock around you. }
It became repetitive saying things like, "Wow! Beautiful! Oh my goodness! This is gorgeous!" The first night in camp I met a couple from our area and we seemed to stand in line, run together for a few miles and bump into each other throughout the weekend. Laura had lost a close friend to breast cancer and together we shouted how majestic today's canyon was. It was cool to have that expected encouragement when we found each other on the course. And by course I mean follow the pink ribbon and if you can't find it, stop, look around and decide where all the footprints are heading. There were times I really had to search for the course marker or I'd be way off adding miles to the run.
It was in Zion that a cactus bit me in the ankle while passing another runner. Good heavens it has a strong bite! Rolled my ankle on the rock but just kept going until I could find myself a mid-run PBJ again. The event staff had a fabulous aid station prepared for all the runners. A spread that included sandwiches, candy, chips, pickles, fruit and liquids. And let's not forget the pop up Eco tents for natures way of discarding waste. They had to of been no bigger than three by three giving you hardly any room to take care of business, but I was still grateful having that verses squatting over a cactus.
I felt great on this run. Breakfast that morning wasn't awesome so I only had a few bites. By the end of today's race I was starving.
Addi and I grabbed Subway for lunch and after showers found a few local attractions to entertain our afternoon. I just loved having her along with me. We laughed so much together. There was no pressure to have serious talks; rather quality time just being with each other. We certainly made some amazing memories... I'm not sure I convinced her to become a runner. Not yet.
{ Car selfies and cave explorations. }
{ Driving is distracting with all the rock around you. }
{ Four year old twister boy made our hammock time far from relaxing. Did I say we laughed lots? }
{ They say load your plates; we did. She said let's play; I won. }
Neither of us barked at an eight o'clock bedtime. With clothes laid out for the next morning we quickly shut our eyes and found more rest. Day three coming up...
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